Harris signs bill Mayor Jeremy Harris has given the go-ahead for a proposed City Charter amendment to be put on the November ballot that asks voters if they want to establish an independent auditor's office.
putting auditor’s
office on ballot
Voters will decide
the City Charter changeBy Gordon Y.K. Pang
gpang@starbulletin.comHarris had earlier raised questions about the cost of maintaining such an office, the necessity for creating another layer of bureaucracy and the potential for the office to become politically influenced.
Harris repeated those concerns yesterday as he signed the bill, according to the mayor's spokeswoman, Carol Costa.
The signing was attended by Councilman Jon Yoshimura, who introduced the bill, and only one invited television news outlet. Harris was not available later to comment on the measure.
Costa said Harris signed the bill because "he thinks the office can be used to improve efficiency and bring down costs."
City Clerk Genny Wong had set yesterday as the deadline for Charter amendments to be forwarded to her office for processing. The question now goes to voters in the Nov. 5 general election.
Yoshimura said the issues raised by Harris are legitimate, noting that he, too, does not want unnecessary bureaucracy.
"My hope is that the auditor will be able to balance the goals of an efficient government with a government that is accountable," Yoshimura said after the signing.
The city likely would spend between $200,000 and $500,000 to hire four to six people, including one auditor, to house the office initially, Yoshimura said.
"We hear a lot about accountability in government, and here is a measure that would go a long way to putting some teeth in that statement," he said.
The proposal calls for an office to be set up similar to that of state auditor Marion Higa, who Yoshimura said helped craft the bill.
Historically, the Office of Council Services has conducted both financial and performance audits as part of its function as the research arm of the Council.
But recent criticism of city agencies and programs -- from the Ewa Villages scandal to questions about the cost of the mayor's Sunset on the Beach program -- show the need for a more focused, better-funded and apolitical auditor's office to tackle complex issues, Council members said. The auditor also would have subpoena powers.
The auditor would be appointed by the Council for a six-year term to avoid simultaneous terms with Council members, who are elected every four years. That would help shield the office from political influence, supporters say.
Removing the auditor for cause would require a two-thirds vote of the nine-member Council.
If approved by the voters, the office could be in place by July 1, the beginning of the next fiscal year, Yoshimura said.
State Office of Elections
